Enrichment capacity seen as key hurdle to Iran deal
Despite an upbeat tone from Iran's President Hassan Rouhani, gaps remain between Iran and the P5+1 in the expectations for Iran's enrichment capacity.
Washington, DC__ Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday offered upbeat reassurances about prospects for reaching a nuclear deal, even as negotiators from Iran and six world powers reported no progress from "sticker shock" nuclear talks in Vienna last week, and urged each other to return to the table next time with more "realism."
With the “positive trend of talks, we are on threshold of solving [the] nuclear issue,” Rouhani said in China Wednesday.
Despite the intentions of both sides, Iran and world powers will not be able to reach a final nuclear accord unless Iran lowers its expectations for the size of its enrichment program, non-proliferation experts in consultation with the parties warned.
“I think Iran genuinely wants a deal,” former State Department Iran non-proliferation advisor Robert Einhorn told Al-Monitor Wednesday.
